1This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar.2The army of the king of Babylon was then besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was confined in the courtyard of the guard in the royal palace of Judah.3Now Zedekiah king of Judah had imprisoned him there, saying, ‘Why do you prophesy as you do? You say, “This is what the Lord says: I am about to give this city into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.4Zedekiah king of Judah will not escape the Babylonians[1] but will certainly be given into the hands of the king of Babylon, and will speak with him face to face and see him with his own eyes.5He will take Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will remain until I deal with him, declares the Lord. If you fight against the Babylonians, you will not succeed.” ’6Jeremiah said, ‘The word of the Lord came to me:7Hanamel son of Shallum your uncle is going to come to you and say, “Buy my field at Anathoth, because as nearest relative it is your right and duty to buy it.”8‘Then, just as the Lord had said, my cousin Hanamel came to me in the courtyard of the guard and said, “Buy my field at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. Since it is your right to redeem it and possess it, buy it for yourself.” ‘I knew that this was the word of the Lord;9so I bought the field at Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel and weighed out for him seventeen shekels[2] of silver.10I signed and sealed the deed, had it witnessed, and weighed out the silver on the scales.11I took the deed of purchase – the sealed copy containing the terms and conditions, as well as the unsealed copy –12and I gave this deed to Baruch son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel and of the witnesses who had signed the deed and of all the Jews sitting in the courtyard of the guard.13‘In their presence I gave Baruch these instructions:14“This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: take these documents, both the sealed and unsealed copies of the deed of purchase, and put them in a clay jar so that they will last a long time.15For this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: houses, fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land.”16‘After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord:17‘Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.18You show love to thousands but bring the punishment for the parents’ sins into the laps of their children after them. Great and mighty God, whose name is the Lord Almighty,19great are your purposes and mighty are your deeds. Your eyes are open to the ways of all mankind; you reward each person according to their conduct and as their deeds deserve.20You performed signs and wonders in Egypt and have continued them to this day, in Israel and among all mankind, and have gained the renown that is still yours.21You brought your people Israel out of Egypt with signs and wonders, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with great terror.22You gave them this land you had sworn to give to their ancestors, a land flowing with milk and honey.23They came in and took possession of it, but they did not obey you or follow your law; they did not do what you commanded them to do. So you brought all this disaster on them.24‘See how the siege ramps are built up to take the city. Because of the sword, famine and plague, the city will be given into the hands of the Babylonians who are attacking it. What you said has happened, as you now see.25And though the city will be given into the hands of the Babylonians, you, Sovereign Lord, say to me, “Buy the field with silver and have the transaction witnessed.” ’26Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:27‘I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?28Therefore this is what the Lord says: I am about to give this city into the hands of the Babylonians and to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who will capture it.29The Babylonians who are attacking this city will come in and set it on fire; they will burn it down, along with the houses where the people aroused my anger by burning incense on the roofs to Baal and by pouring out drink offerings to other gods.30‘The people of Israel and Judah have done nothing but evil in my sight from their youth; indeed, the people of Israel have done nothing but arouse my anger with what their hands have made, declares the Lord.31From the day it was built until now, this city has so aroused my anger and wrath that I must remove it from my sight.32The people of Israel and Judah have provoked me by all the evil they have done – they, their kings and officials, their priests and prophets, the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem.33They turned their backs to me and not their faces; though I taught them again and again, they would not listen or respond to discipline.34They set up their vile images in the house that bears my Name and defiled it.35They built high places for Baal in the Valley of Ben Hinnom to sacrifice their sons and daughters to Molek, though I never commanded – nor did it enter my mind – that they should do such a detestable thing and so make Judah sin.36‘You are saying about this city, “By the sword, famine and plague it will be given into the hands of the king of Babylon”; but this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says:37I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety.38They will be my people, and I will be their God.39I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and for their children after them.40I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me.41I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and soul.42‘This is what the Lord says: as I have brought all this great calamity on this people, so I will give them all the prosperity I have promised them.43Once more fields will be bought in this land of which you say, “It is a desolate waste, without people or animals, for it has been given into the hands of the Babylonians.”44Fields will be bought for silver, and deeds will be signed, sealed and witnessed in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, because I will restore their fortunes,[3] declares the Lord.’
Jeremiah 32
English Standard Version
Jeremiah Buys a Field During the Siege
1The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. (2Ki 25:2; 2Ki 25:8; Jer 37:5; Jer 37:11; Jer 39:1; Jer 52:4; Jer 52:12)2At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the guard that was in the palace of the king of Judah. (Ne 3:25; Ps 88:8; Jer 32:8; Jer 32:12; Jer 33:1; Jer 37:21; Jer 38:6; Jer 38:13; Jer 39:14)3For Zedekiah king of Judah had imprisoned him, saying, “Why do you prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall capture it; (Jer 21:10; Jer 32:25; Jer 32:36; Jer 32:43; Jer 34:2; Jer 37:17; Jer 38:3)4Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye. (Jer 32:3; Jer 34:3)5And he shall take Zedekiah to Babylon, and there he shall remain until I visit him, declares the Lord. Though you fight against the Chaldeans, you shall not succeed’?” (Jer 21:4; Jer 33:5; Jer 39:7; Jer 52:11)6Jeremiah said, “The word of the Lord came to me:7Behold, Hanamel the son of Shallum your uncle will come to you and say, ‘Buy my field that is at Anathoth, for the right of redemption by purchase is yours.’ (Le 25:25; Jos 21:18; Ru 4:4; Jer 1:1; Jer 29:27; Jer 32:25)8Then Hanamel my cousin came to me in the court of the guard, in accordance with the word of the Lord, and said to me, ‘Buy my field that is at Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, for the right of possession and redemption is yours; buy it for yourself.’ Then I knew that this was the word of the Lord. (Jer 32:2; Jer 32:7)9“And I bought the field at Anathoth from Hanamel my cousin, and weighed out the money to him, seventeen shekels of silver. (Ge 23:16; Jer 32:7; Zec 11:12; Mt 26:15)10I signed the deed, sealed it, got witnesses, and weighed the money on scales. (Es 3:12; Jer 32:9; Jer 32:25; Jer 32:44)11Then I took the sealed deed of purchase, containing the terms and conditions and the open copy.12And I gave the deed of purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah son of Mahseiah, in the presence of Hanamel my cousin, in the presence of the witnesses who signed the deed of purchase, and in the presence of all the Judeans who were sitting in the court of the guard. (Isa 8:2; Jer 32:2; Jer 36:4; Jer 36:8; Jer 36:10; Jer 36:14; Jer 36:26; Jer 36:32; Jer 43:3; Jer 43:6; Jer 45:1)13I charged Baruch in their presence, saying, (Jer 32:12)14‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Take these deeds, both this sealed deed of purchase and this open deed, and put them in an earthenware vessel, that they may last for a long time.15For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land.’ (Jer 32:43)
Jeremiah Prays for Understanding
16“After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord, saying: (Jer 32:12)17‘Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you. (Ge 18:14; Isa 37:16; Jer 21:5; Jer 32:27)18You show steadfast love to thousands, but you repay the guilt of fathers to their children after them, O great and mighty God, whose name is the Lord of hosts, (Ex 20:6; Ex 34:7; De 5:9; Ps 79:12; Isa 9:6; Isa 65:6; Jer 10:16)19great in counsel and mighty in deed, whose eyes are open to all the ways of the children of man, rewarding each one according to his ways and according to the fruit of his deeds. (Ps 66:3; Ps 66:5; Isa 28:29; Jer 16:17; Jer 17:10)20You have shown signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and to this day in Israel and among all mankind, and have made a name for yourself, as at this day. (2Sa 7:23; Ne 9:10; Ps 135:9)21You brought your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong hand and outstretched arm, and with great terror. (Ex 6:6; De 4:34; 1Ch 17:21; Jer 21:5)22And you gave them this land, which you swore to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey. (Ex 3:8; De 26:15)23And they entered and took possession of it. But they did not obey your voice or walk in your law. They did nothing of all you commanded them to do. Therefore you have made all this disaster come upon them. (Ne 9:26; Jer 11:8; Da 9:10)24Behold, the siege mounds have come up to the city to take it, and because of sword and famine and pestilence the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it. What you spoke has come to pass, and behold, you see it. (Jer 6:6; Jer 14:12; Jer 32:3; Jer 32:36; Jer 33:4)25Yet you, O Lord God, have said to me, “Buy the field for money and get witnesses”—though the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans.’” (Jer 32:7; Jer 32:10; Jer 32:24)26The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:27“Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me? (Ge 18:14; Nu 16:22)28Therefore, thus says the Lord: Behold, I am giving this city into the hands of the Chaldeans and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he shall capture it. (Jer 32:3)29The Chaldeans who are fighting against this city shall come and set this city on fire and burn it, with the houses on whose roofs offerings have been made to Baal and drink offerings have been poured out to other gods, to provoke me to anger. (Jer 7:18; Jer 19:13; Jer 21:10)30For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have done nothing but evil in my sight from their youth. The children of Israel have done nothing but provoke me to anger by the work of their hands, declares the Lord. (Jer 3:25; Jer 25:6; Jer 32:29)31This city has aroused my anger and wrath, from the day it was built to this day, so that I will remove it from my sight (2Ki 23:27; 2Ki 24:3)32because of all the evil of the children of Israel and the children of Judah that they did to provoke me to anger—their kings and their officials, their priests and their prophets, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. (Jer 2:26)33They have turned to me their back and not their face. And though I have taught them persistently, they have not listened to receive instruction. (Jer 2:27; Jer 5:3; Jer 7:24; Jer 25:3; Eze 8:16)34They set up their abominations in the house that is called by my name, to defile it. (Jer 7:30; Jer 23:11)35They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin. (Le 18:21; Jos 18:16; 1Ki 16:19; Jer 7:31; Jer 32:34)
They Shall Be My People; I Will Be Their God
36“Now therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you say, ‘It is given into the hand of the king of Babylon by sword, by famine, and by pestilence’: (Jer 32:3)37Behold, I will gather them from all the countries to which I drove them in my anger and my wrath and in great indignation. I will bring them back to this place, and I will make them dwell in safety. (De 29:28; Jer 8:3; Jer 21:5; Jer 23:3; Jer 23:6; Jer 33:16; Eze 34:25)38And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. (Jer 30:22; Jer 31:33)39I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them. (De 6:24; Eze 11:19)40I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me. (Ps 89:34; Isa 55:3; Jer 31:33; Jer 50:5; Eze 16:60)41I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul. (De 28:63; Jer 24:6)42“For thus says the Lord: Just as I have brought all this great disaster upon this people, so I will bring upon them all the good that I promise them. (Jer 31:28)43Fields shall be bought in this land of which you are saying, ‘It is a desolation, without man or beast; it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’ (Jer 32:3; Jer 32:15; Jer 33:10)44Fields shall be bought for money, and deeds shall be signed and sealed and witnessed, in the land of Benjamin, in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, in the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the Shephelah, and in the cities of the Negeb; for I will restore their fortunes, declares the Lord.” (Jer 17:26; Jer 30:3; Jer 32:10)